Billing & Invoicing Software · Accounting Software

Wave vs QuickBooks Online

Both are billing & invoicing software and accounting software. The short answer: choose Wave if you are very small businesses in the US and Canada on a tight budget; choose QuickBooks Online if you are small businesses in the US, UK, Canada and Australia.

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Wave logo WaveQuickBooks Online logo QuickBooks Online
Best forVery small businesses in the US and Canada on a tight budgetSmall businesses in the US, UK, Canada and Australia
Free planYesNo (trial may exist)
PricingSee providerSee provider
Built for IndiaGlobalGlobal
CategoriesBilling & Invoicing Software, Accounting SoftwareBilling & Invoicing Software, Accounting Software
Strengths
  • Free core invoicing and accounting
  • Simple to learn
  • Large accountant and app ecosystem
  • Strong reporting
  • Good bank integrations
Watch out for
  • Best suited to US/Canada
  • Fewer integrations
  • Availability and features vary by country
  • Costs rise with add-ons
Visit WaveVisit QuickBooks Online

Which should you choose?

Wave: Free-to-start invoicing and accounting for small businesses, with paid payments and payroll add-ons.

QuickBooks Online: Widely used cloud accounting software with invoicing, expenses, bank feeds and an accountant ecosystem.

The best way to decide is to run the same week of real work through both — most offer a free plan or trial — and compare how long tasks take, what your team prefers, and the total cost for your number of users including renewal pricing.

Not sure either fits? See all billing & invoicing software compared.